Entries by Alan Patricof

In my 40-plus years as a venture capitalist I have come to appreciate the certainty a healthy economy provides for businesses both large and small. It's actually a pretty basic concept: when businesses feel secure and confident they are more likely to grow, hire, and invest. Conversely, when the economy...

For more than 40 years the question of whether "carried interest" of general partners of limited partnerships should be treated as capital gains or ordinary income for tax purposes has been a ticking time bomb waiting to be elevated to a higher level of public dialogue. During this time it...

I am writing this blog on a plane flying back from Kampala, Uganda; Nairobi, Kenya; and Abuja, Nigeria where I have spent the past week immediately following Election Day in the U.S. I have interacted with Africans from many nations, regions, tribes and allegiances during this period and clearly Africa...

The comments made by the partners of Sequoia Capital at their recently held "CEO Summit" have been widely covered by leaks to numerous bloggers. These bloggers have disseminated the details and spread the contagion of the sentiments to the public at large, unfortunately running the risk that the...

Well, we finally have a resolution to Carl Icahn and his machinations at Yahoo so we can all go back to worrying about the economy, interest rates and mortgage foreclosures. Carl has been pacified and the company can go forward carrying on its business activities on a normal basis (whatever...

Small business is receiving a surge of interest in the developing world as it has never received before. Schumpeter's concept of "Small is Beautiful" is taking on new meaning as the international development community, is giving serious attention to the specific needs of businesses who are beyond the levels of...

I just returned from Ouagadougou, Mopti and Timbuktu, the latter a place you've probably heard of all your life but couldn't find on the map. Yes, Timbuktu - or Tombouctou as it is called by its inhabitants - really does exist and it is not in Nepal or the Himalayas...

For the past six months I have served as a member of Nigerian President Obasanjo's Honorary International Investor Council (pro bono) and have had the opportunity during two meetings, one in London and most recently during two full days in Abuja, the capital, to spend a concentrated period of time...

Arianna Huffington became an honorary Jew last Thursday night when she presided at the Israel Policy Forum Annual Tribute Dinner at the Waldorf. The IPF which was formed in 1993 in the wake of the Oslo Accord is probably today the most independent mainstream organization whose sole purpose...